Button



April 1, 1930. M CLARK ET AL 1,752,420

BUTTON Filed Sept. 50, 1929 l. rlllU17 li "y Patented Apr. 1, 1930UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE'.y

JOHN M. CLARK, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN7 AND'IRA D. FORD, OF ROSELAND,ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNORS TO UNIVERSAL BUTTON FASTENING & BUTTONCOMPANY., OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION OF MICHIGAN BUTTONApplication led September 3(7), 1929. Serial No. 396,061.

This invention relates to buttons for workmens clothing and the like andaims to provide an inexpensive but durable button which may be made atlow labor and other manufac turing costs.

The invention may be readily understood b reference to one form ofbutton embodying t e invention and illustra-ted in the accompanyingdrawing.

In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a button attached to the fabric by adouble pronged fastener and employed in conjunction with an overallsuspender loop shown engaging the neck or shank of the button.

Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the under face of the construct-ionshown in Fig. 1, the section being taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an elevation partly in section of a button attached by asingle pronged fastener.

Fig. 4 is a lan view of the fastener engaging element or the singlepronged fastener.

The illustrative button has a solid metal body comprising a head 10 anda shank or neck 11, the latter provided with fastener engaging means bywhich the button is attached.

The button body is advantageously made of soft steel or other metal inthe form of rod or similar stock (which is quite inexpensive as comparedwith sheet metal stock customarily used in the manufacture of metalbuttons) and is brought into the illustrative shape by one or more diepressing operations upon a blank or slug cut from the rod stock. Thebutton head may advantageously be imroved in appearance as well asprotected by being provided with a superficial covering of enamel, metalplating, or the like.

The shank 11 of the button being in this case an integral part of thebutton body, is made in a much smaller dia-meter or thickness and withgreater strength, than a hollow shank button made of more expensivesheet metal. Its smaller diameter permits it to be buttoned throughbuttonholes without buckling the cloth as frequently happens withbuttons whose necks or collets are larger than the buttonholes providedfor their reception. The aforesaid die pressing operations mayadvantageously include the formation of a recess 12 in the end of theshank, the curved bottom 13 of which serves to upset the athxingfastener for purposes of attachment. The inner wall of the recess isalso provided with a shoulder 14 (in this case circular in form andextending around the recess inside the rim 15) which is provided toserve as a seat for the fastener engaging element 16. The fastenerengaging element whether in disc or other form embodies a transverse bar17 for a double pronged fastener, and a prong penetrable member 18 for asingle pronged fastener. The fastener engaging element is held inposition against the shoulder 14 by crimping or turning over therelatively thin rim 19 at the extremity of the shank into firmengagement with the element 16.

The bar form of fastener engaging element provides a space on each sideof the bar through which the fastener prongs straddling the bar mayenter recess 12 and operatively engage the curved surface 13. The latterserves to curl or bend the prongs from opposite sides, tightly over thebar. The bar is here shown in the form of a straight piece of vwirewhose ends are held in position against the shoulder 14 by the crimpedover rim 19. The fastener penetrable member 18 for the single prongfastener is here shown as a disc having a perforation 20 therein whichis slightly smaller than that portion of the fastener prong which `isalined therewith upon attachment, so that the prong is required slightlyto enlarge the openingthereby producing a tight fit around the fastenerprong. In this case the bottom of the recess 12 serves to upset theextremity of the fastener prong as at 21 against the inner face of thedisc and to enlarge it so that it cannot be withdrawn through the disc.Thus, whether the button be attached by a single or double prongedfastener, it is held tightly against the cloth wit-h no opportunity forplay which might result in concentrating strain on the cloth. In thisconnection, the 'but-ton base may be provided with a knurled or otherappropriately roughened surface 22 to provide small teeth to increasethe grip against the cloth.

After formation of the button body as aforesaid, Vand preferably afterthe fastener engaging element is seated and crimped therein, the buttonis given a cleansing treatment (principally to remove the oil which mayhave been placed on the blank to lubricate the forming dies) andthereafter plated, enameled, or otherwise finished to improve theappearance particularly of the outer face of the button head. If thebutton head is finished by a separate shell 23, the latter may beapplied before the aforesaid cleansing operation. Said shell is composedof thin sheet metal and is either itself rust proof or plated to renderit rust proof. When thus finished the under face of the head is rabbetedor recessed as at 24 to receive the turned over flange 25 of the shellin order to provide a flush surface for the under side of the head.

The illustrative button is not only inexpensive because it is made ofrelatively inexpensive elements but because of elimination of Waste. Inthe manufacture of the ordinary button from sheet metal there is a Wasteof from ten to thirty-three and onethird percent (10% to S31/3%) of thismore expensive material. Moreover', cost of manufacturing operations isless because its construction is such as to lend itself Well to economicmanufacture, requiring little or no handling. For example, the buttonbody may be formed by a series of mechanical operations which involve nointervening manual handling. lVhile the button is advantageously adaptedfor automatic manufacture, its production is obviously not limited tofull automatic manufacture, or indeed to manufacture according to anydefinite sequence of operations.

The button is further constructed and arranged for use with buttonattaching machines now on the market, that is, its exteriorcontourvadapts it to attachment by machines employed for attaching theordinary hollow sheet metal button.

Obviously the invention is not limited to the precise details of theillustrative button since these may be variously modified.

Having described our invention, we claim:

l. A button of the character described comprising in combination, asolid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter,the latter recessed at its extremity to provide a. surface for upsettingan attaching fastener, said recess being shaped with a shoulder, and afastener engaging element seated against said shoulder.

2. A button of the character described comprising in combination, asolid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter,the latter recessed at its extremity and provided With a shoulder` and afastener engaging element seated against said shoulder.

3. A button of the character described comprising in combination., asolid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter,the latter recessed at its extremity and provided with a shoulder, and afastener engaging element seated against said shoulder, the edge of saidrecessed extremity being crimped over said element to hold the same inplace.

el. A button of the character dcffacribefl comprising in combination, asolid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter,the latter recessed its extremity to provide a surface for upsetting anattaching fastener, said recess being shaped with a shoulder, and afastener engaging element seated against said shoulder, the edge of saidrecessed extremity being crimped over said element to hold the same inplace.

A button of the character described comprising in combination, a. solidmetal body having a head and a shank, said shank being recessed at itsextremity to provide a surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, anda fastener engaging element located adjacent the mouth of said recess,the edge of said extremity being crimped over to hold said fastenerengaging element in place.

6. A button of the character described comprising in combination, asolid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank beingr recessedat its extremity to provide a concave curved surface for upsetting anattaching fastener, a fastener engaging element seated across saidrecess, and means in said recess to provide a seat for said element,said shank being upset at its extremity to engage said element to holdthe latter in place.

7. A button of the character described com prising in combination, asolid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank being recessed atits extremity to provide a concave curved surface for upsetting anattaching fastener, a. fastener engaging element providing a bar seatedacross said recess, said barbeing positioned relative to said surface tohave a pronged fastener bent around it by said surface, said shank beingupset at its extremity to engage said element to hold the latter inplace.

S. A button of the character described comprising in combination, ametal body formed to provide a head and a shank, said shank beingrecessed to receive the extremity of an attaching fastener, and saidshank being,r provided at its base with a roughened cloth engagingsurface, and means associated with said recess for engaging theattaching fastener to hold said base firmly against the cloth.

9. A button of the character described comprising in combination, asolid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank being recessed atits extremity to provide a concave curved surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, a fastener engaging element seated across said recess,and means in said recess to provide a seat for said element, said sha-nkbeing upset at its extremity to engage said elenient to hold the latterin place and having its cloth engaging surface provided with smallgipping teeth to cooperate in preventing movement of the button on thecloth.

In testimony whereof, We have signed our names to this specification.

JOHN M. CLARK. IRA D. FORD.

